Just two weeks ago, Dallas’ most-bustling entertainment district was humming along as usual, and business in Deep Ellum was good, with swarms of people descending upon the neighborhood for its vibrant music, nightlife, dining and retails offerings.

Then the coronavirus pandemic hit.

On Monday, March 16, the City of Dallas alike ordered all restaurant dining rooms, bars, taverns, lounges, nightclubs, health clubs, gyms, arcades, theaters, billiard halls and music venues across the city to temporarily cease operations — the most notable exception being restaurants able to provide takeout or delivery offerings. On Wednesday, March 18, Dallas City Council extended that order, likely through April 29. The next day, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott expanded these measures statewide through at least April 3.

The images are at once reassuring (in the sense that people are listening to our officials’ just mandates) and heartbreaking (in the sense that our favorite spots are slowly being choked out).

For both reasons, they’re important visuals representative of these uncertain waters we’re all navigating together at the moment. Many thanks, then, to Uribe for allowing us to publish those photos here for your viewing.

Pete is the founder, editor and president of Central Track. He is the former music editor of the Dallas Observer. His work has been published in The Daily Beast, Deadspin, LA Weekly, Village Voice, Spin Magazine, The Miami Herald and The Toronto Star, among other major publications. The Association of Alternative Newsweeklies has honored his long-form narrative writing and his blogging efforts alike. In 2009, NBCDFW.com named him one of the 25 Most Interesting People in DFW, a fact he remains all too eager to bring up at dinner parties.